A bit of history:
Most people dismiss the Maus as a prototype or, worse, a "Paper Panzer". The truth is that it has the dubious honor of being the only German tank whose production was stopped by the allied bombing campaign.
The go-ahead for the production was given at a Fuehrer conference held on 3rd January, 1943. Things progressed quickly, a wooden 1:1 scale mockup was presented on 14th of may, 1943. It was decided that 120 Pz.Kpfw Maus should be produced at a rate of 10 every month, a figure later reduced to 5. Mass production started in early July,1943. A bombing raid that took place in early august 1943 was successful in killing off the production program by destroying vital machine-tools. Repeated attempts were made to reinstate the production, ultimately to no avail. Production ceased after 2 vehicles were completed (the first did not receive its turret) and 6 or 7 Wanne with their turrets another 8 Wanne that were ready to be welded. The completed machines were tested at Kummersdorf, near Berlin. Maus V2 has actually fought in a delaying action against units of the 3rd Guards Tank Army, part of Kampfgruppe Kahler on 21st of April 1945. It was blown up by its crew in an intersection in Topchin, 30 kilometers away from the testing facility. Please note that its fuel consumption was 350 liters of Diesel every 10 km. After the war the russians took the more or less intact turret of Maus V2 and mated it to the Maus Wanne V1. The hybrid has arived at Kubinka on 4th of may, 1946.It was extensively tested, including being used as a target for all the soviet antitank equipment of the day, to which it proved impervious. In the early 1950's it was donated to the tank museum, where it resides today. Rumors about the existence of another Maus in russia, supposedly captured in Berlin are confirmed by a french intelligence document that states that a Maus was completed in October 1944 and was sent to a museum in Berlin.

On the vehicle itself:
Supposedly it was a lumbering beast, barely crawling due to its weight. Not quite true. Its top speed was 20 km/hour, it could easily climb slopes of 45 degrees, and it had deep wading capability. Its minimal turning radius was 7,25 m, almost twice that of a Tiger I at 3,55m, but significantly less the 18,6 m for a M4 Sherman mid production. The T34 could only do skid turns. On 15th of march, 1944 the Maus V1 has sunk in swampy ground up to two thirds its hull, due the driver not knowing the terrain, avoided by all other vehicles. After laying timbers under the tracks, the Maus pulled itself free under its own power, with no external help.
Hull armor:
- Frontal armor 200 mm
- Posterior armor 150 mm
- Lateral armor 180 mm
- Roof 100 and 50 mm
- Floor 100 and 50 mm
- Tracks are protected by 100 mm armor

On the kit
Having first appeared in 1992, the kit represents the hybrid that now rests in Kubinka. Dimensionally it is spot on when compared to the Panzer Tracts 6-3 plans. It has a few drawbacks: the escape hatch is on the wrong side, the pistol ports on the turret are a little too forward and too low, the mantlet is misrepresented. Towing eyes at the rear of the hull are missing. Despite a lack of detail it is a good base for improvement.